AND HIS AUNTIE
SARA CONE BRYANT
EPAMINONDAS
AND HIS AUNTIE
By Sara Cone Bryant
Poor Epaminondas — he
tried so hard to do the right
thing, but he always took the
wrong time to do it. When-
ever Epaminondas went to
visit his Auntie, she gave him
something to take home, but
he always carried it the wrong
way. When the sun melted
the butter Auntie gave him,
Epaminondas's mother told
him how to keep it cool. Then
Auntie gave him a puppy,
and what do you suppose
Epaminondas did ? The wrong
thing, you may be sure. And
if you think Epaminondas
ever changed, you must read
this story.
Lavishly illustrated in color
by Inez Hogan
< I
EPAMINONDAS
AND HIS AUNTIE
5ARA CONE BRYANT
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EPAMINONDA5
And HIS AUNTIE
SARA CONEr BRYANT
ILI/U5TRATEI> BY INEZHOGAN
HOUGHTON MIFFLIN CO.
BOSTON AND NErW YORK
COPYRIGHT, 1907, BY SARA CONE BRYANT
COPYRIGHT, I93S. BY SARA BRYANT BORST
COPYRIGHT, 1938, BY HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY
HLL RIGHTS RESERVED INCLUDING THE RIGHT TO REPRODUCE
THIS BOOK OR PARTS THEREOF IN AKY FORM
SIXTEENTH PRINTING R
CAMBRIDGE ■ MASSACHUSEn-S
PRINTED IN THB U.S.A.
Epaminondas used to go to see his Auntie 'most
every day, and she nearly always gave him some-
thing to take home to his Mammy.
One day she gave him a big piece of cake; nice,
yellow, rich-gold cake.
Epaminondas took it in his fist and held it all
scrunched up tight, and came along home. By
the time he got home there wasn't anything left
but a fistful of crumbs. His Mammy said:
'What you got there, Epaminondas?'
'Cake, Mammy,' said Epaminondas.
'Cake!' said his Mammy. 'Epaminondas, you
ain't got the sense you was born with! That's no
way to carry cake. The way to carry cake is to
wrap it all up nice in some leaves and put it in your
hat, and put your hat on your head, and come
along home. You hear me, Epaminondas?'
'Yes, Mammy,' said Epaminondas.
Next day Epaminondas went to see his Auntie,
and she gave him a pound of butter for his Mammy
— fine, fresh, sweet butter.
Epaminondas wrapped it up in leaves and put
it in his hat, and put his hat on his head, and came
along home.
'^"•^mi II iiiL
It was a very hot day. Pretty soon the butter
began to melt. It melted, and melted, and as it
melted it ran down Epaminondas' forehead; then
it ran over his face, and in his ears, and down his
neck. When he got home, all the butter Epaminon-
das had was on him. His Mammy looked at him,
and then she said:
'Law's sake! Epaminondas, what you got in your
hat?'
'Butter, Mammy,' said Epaminondas; 'Auntie
gave it to me.'
'Butter!' said his Mammy. 'Epaminondas, you
ain't got the sense you was born with! Don't you
know that's no way to carry butter?
Mmmmmmmmmmmmm
wttmrnHmnmnitn^
'The way to carry butter is to wrap it up in some
leaves and take it down to the brook, and cool it
in the water, and cool it in the water, and cool it
in the water, and then take it in your hands, care-
ful, and bring it along home.'
'Yes, Mammy,' said Epaminondas.
By and by, another day, Epaminondas went to
see his Auntie again, and this time she gave him
a little new puppy-dog to take home.
Epaminondas put it in some leaves and took it
down to the brook; and there he cooled it in the
water, and cooled it in the water, and cooled it in
the water; then he took it in his hands and came
along home. When he got home, the puppy-dog
W81S almost dead. His Mammy looked at it, and
sh« said;
lO
'Law's sake! Epaminondas, what you got there?'
'A puppy-dog, Mammy,' said Epaminondas.
'A puppy-dogT said his Mammy. 'My gracious
sakes alive, Epaminondas, you ain't got the sense
you was born with! That ain't the way to carry a
puppy-dog! The way to carry a puppy-dog is to
take a long piece of string and tie one end of it
around the puppy-dog's neck and put the puppy-
dog on the ground, and take hold of the other end
of the string and come along home.'
"*«»«Mi«..
II
'All right, Mammy,' said Epaminondas.
12
Next day, Epaminondas went to see his Auntie
again, and when he came to go home she gave
him a loaf of bread to carry to his Mammy; a brown,
fresh, crusty loaf of bread.
So Epaminondas tied a string around the end
of the loaf and took hold of the end of the string
and came along home. When he got home his
Mammy looked at the thing on the end of the string,
and she said:
'My laws a-massy! Epaminondas, what you got
on the end of that string?'
'Bread, Mammy,' said Epaminondas; 'Auntie
gave it to me.'
'Bread!!!' said his Mammy. '0 Epaminondas,
Epaminondas, you ain't got the sense you was
born with; you never did have the sense you was
born with, you never will have the sense you was
born with! Now I ain't gwine tell you any more
ways to bring truck home.
14
'And don't you go see your Auntie, neither. I'll
go see her my own self. But I'll just tell you one
thing, Epaminondas! You see these here six mince
pies I done make? You see how I done set 'em
on the doorstep to cool? Well, now, you hear me,
Epaminondas, you he careful how you step on
those piesf
'Yes, Mammy,' said Epaminondas.
Then Epaminondas' Mammy put on her bonnet
and her shawl and took a basket in her hand and
went away to see Auntie. The six mince pies sat
cooling in a row on the doorstep.
t5
And then — and then — Epaminondas was care-
ful how he stepped on those pies!
He stepped — right — in — the — middle — of
— every — one.
i6
r^^
TtBo Favorite Books
By Sara Cone Bryant
HOW TO TELL STORIES
TO CHILDREN
STORIES TO TELL
TO CHILDREN
These two popular books were published
in smaller form a number of years ago.
They are now brought out in a very attrac-
tive manner, with colored jackets.
The former book contains five chapters
on choice of stories, preparation for telling,
and method of teUing. There are thirty-two
model stories to tell.
The latter volume includes fifty model
stories to tell, with suggestions as to choice
and method, and a chapter on Spoken Eng-
Ush.
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